The private data of many people is managed by large companies and organizations. In this essay, I will discuss both the advantages and disadvantages and present my own opinion.
On the one hand, personal data of individuals helps corporations manage preferences properly, which creates convenience. This also provides highly customized user experience and more relevant product recommendations. For example, in many popular internet shops, such as “Amazon” or “eBay”, organizations use people’s information in order to provide fast and effective service. To ensure these commercial benefits do not compromise privacy, governments have implemented strict data protection laws that help combat any risks. For instance, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) gives individuals the right to manage their personal data. Consequently, it forms a large sense of security, which helps people not to be afraid of losing private information.
On the other hand, cybercriminals frequently target corporate systems to access individual data, rendering private information public. The primary risk of these vulnerabilities is that massive databases can be breached to steal identities. For example, a massive data breach in 2017 compromised the personal information of millions, subsequently leading to severe financial losses for numerous individuals. Furthermore, many online stores share or sell collected information of customers without their awareness. In many cases, this led to a vast number of people’s private information being exposed. These third-party exploitations put identities of customers under a major threat.
In conclusion, the personal information of many individuals is protected through several systems of security, though they are also vulnerable to hacker’s attacks that lead to information loss. Ultimately, however, it seems to me that the disadvantages of this outweigh its advantages, taking into account given examples.